Parks and Rec star Aziz Ansari coming to Huntington on standup tour

HUNTINGTON — Comedian Aziz Ansari, named 2011’s “Funniest Dude in Prime Time” by People Magazine, will appear at the Keith-Albee Performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 3. His “Buried Alive” tour appearance is being presented by Upfront, Inc., and Marshall University’s Campus Activity Board.

Tickets are $20 for students and $33 for general admission and may be purchased by calling 304-696-6656 or visiting ticketmaster.com. Box office hours are noon to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. All tickets are subject to applicable service charges and fees, and dates and times are subject to change without notice.

Ansari has quickly established his presence in the comedy world. He is currently starring in a popular television series, is developing a number of films and will soon debut his second hour-long standup special. The Hollywood Reporter said that he “has become one of the most prolific writers and performers on the comedy scene in recent years,” and Rolling Stone recently placed him on the cover of its special comedy issue labeling him “the funniest man under 30.” In addition, Paste Magazine has named him one of the “Top 10 Comedians of the Decade.” Ansari also wrapped a much-buzzed-about gig as the host of the 2010 MTV Movie Awards.

Ansari co-stars opposite of Amy Poehler in the Emmy-nominated NBC series, “Parks and Recreation,” which is currently in its fifth season. The series received its first Emmy nomination in 2011 for “Outstanding Comedy Series.” Ansari’s portrayal of government employee “Tom Haverford” has earned him much critical praise including Entertainment Weekly naming him one of its “Breakout TV Stars,” TV Guide naming him a “Scene Stealer” and Yahoo! TV placing him in the number one spot on its list of “TV MVPS: The Most Valuable Performers of the Fall Season.”

Ansari is also keeping busy in the film world and was most recently seen starring in the action comedy “30 Minutes or Less” opposite Jesse Eisenberg and Danny McBride. He also voiced the part of Squint in Twentieth Century Fox's "Ice Age: Continental Drift.” Ansari also appeared in “Get Him to the Greek” alongside Russell Brand, Jonah Hill and Sean “Diddy’ Combs,” as a co-worker of Hill’s character. He has had roles in the hit comedies “I Love You, Man” and “Observe and Report.”

In 2010, Ansari released an hour-long standup special on Comedy Central titled, “Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening.” The special and subsequent DVD/CD were both extremely successful and the album continues to be a mainstay on iTunes’ comedy best-seller list. Ansari has also become a regular on the late-night circuit with memorable appearances on “The Late Show with David Letterman,” “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien,” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”

In 2011, Ansari wrapped up a major multi-city standup tour called the “Dangerously Delicious Tour” and it was released as another hour-long standup special. He began performing standup in 2001 while attending NYU and continues to perform at venues all over the world today. In 2005, Rolling Stone named him its choice for “Hot Standup” on its annual Hot List, and he was also awarded the Jury Award for Best Standup at the US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen in 2006.

Ansari first came to audiences’ attention on MTV’s hit sketch comedy series, “Human Giant.” The series is based around short films starring Ansari, along with Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer. Many of their sketches have become Internet sensations and have popularized the trio with young people all across the US. Ansari also had a very memorable guest starring role on HBO’s “Flight of the Conchords,” in which he portrayed a racist fruit vendor, and was seen in a multi-episode arc on “Scrubs.”